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The name tag said “Autumn,” who didn’t look up from the cash register at Bojangles while I ordered. Then I mentally told her I loved her and immediately she looked up and smiled a shiny braces smile.

And that’s been the spooky thing all day. Several times when I mentally told a stranger that I loved them, they reacted to me with a smile, deep eye contact, and a hello. In the case of Autumn, I wondered if I mistakenly had said it out loud. Then it occurred to me that if I ever actually said “I love you” out loud to a total stranger, the reaction probably would be fright and flight. That’s crazy talk.

There seems to be some kind of brain chemistry going on in me, and some kind of love vibe that touches people.

Take Rhonda, the photographer assigned to me for taking my photo for the church directory. After I mentally told Rhonda I loved her, I decided I wanted to know more about her. As she had me pose one way or another, we talked about her troubles with her son and daughter, about how she moved here and misses home. After we finished, she said she enjoyed meeting me in a way that told me she meant it. And we parted with smiles and a wish from me that she finds happiness here in her new home.

I’m in the market for a second car and considered suspending the love experiment while visiting car

“Nissan_Car_dealership_Tokorozawa_Saitama” (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

dealerships. Decided that was a cop out, so as I looked at the Versas and Sentras at the Nissan dealership, Jeff came out to help me. I mentally loved him and he was friendly and not pushy. As I walked through the three dealerships lined up in a row and scanned cars old and new, I met three sales guys who were helpful. I didn’t notice a whiff of bull****, which wasn’t my experience at a dealership I visited last week before the love experiment.

This afternoon I ran into a friend I don’t know all that well. When I mentally loved her, I suddenly remembered she had started her own cupcake business months ago. So I asked her about it, and she lit up, telling me how well it was going. She was surprised that I remembered, and, frankly, so was I.

When you love someone, you want them to feel special and appreciated. When you love someone, the desire to do that comes from somewhere deep inside. Paying attention to the emotional needs of someone else makes it necessary to live in the moment, pay attention, and consequently be more alive.